Touchline80 is a blog for kids that are passionate about English Football (soccer).

Month:January 2016

Here is a brief recap of the matches that took place on match day 23. When Norwich netted their third goal of the match to go 3-1 up on Liverpool I’m guessing not many people thought they would lose, but that’s exactly what happened. Jordan Henderson scored in the 55th minute to make it 3-2. Then Roberto Firmino tied it 3-3 and in the 75th minute Liverpool took the lead thanks to James Milner. Norwich weren’t going to go down without a fight though. They equalized in the 2nd minute of stoppage time. In the last minute of stoppage time Adam Lallana snatched all three points for the Reds. Tottenham came back from 1-0 down to beat Crystal Palace, 3-1. Leicester destroyed Stoke, 3-0. Charlie Austin solo goal gave Southampton a 1-0 victory over Manchester United. Bournemouth and Sunderland drew, 1-1. Newcastle United lost 2-1 to Watford. West Brom tied 0-0 with Aston Villa. Sergio Agüero (Manchester City) and Enner Valencia (West Ham) both netted braces in Manchester City and West Ham’s 2-2 draw. Swansea defeated Everton 2-1. Chelsea beat Arsenal 1-0, gaining three much needed points. Well, that’s all for match day 23’s EPL action.

David De Gea is regarded by most to be one, if not the, greatest keepers in the world. He is a huge reason why Manchester United sit no lower than fifth in the Premier League and qualified for the UEFA Champions League last year. He is also a big reason Louis van Gaal (Manchester United’s manager) hasn’t been fired yet. I’m 99% sure that if van Gaal did’t qualify for the UEFA Champions League last year that he would have been fired. Even if he wasn’t, he probably would have this season if the Reds were lower than fifth. The funny thing is, when Louis van Gaal was appointed manager of Manchester United he did not renew De Gea’s waning contract because he wasn’t sold on his talent. That led to Real Madrid coming within a few hours of signing De Gea for a huge bargain. The deal fell through, though, when one of the teams didn’t fill out the paper work before the deadline of the summer transfer window. It seems like that brought him to his senses because shortly after he signed De Gea to a new contract. De Gea may still end up at Real Madrid later on, but for know he will continue to guard United’s net. As for Louis van Gaal, his time in Manchester may be running out.

Here is a brief recap of the EPL matches that took place on match day 22. Christian Eriksen netted a brace in Tottenham’s 4-1 win over Sunderland. Bournemouth crushed Norwich, 3-0. Everton had to have thought they had secured all three points when Funes Mori scored in the 90th minute to put the Toffees 3-2 up, but in the last minute of stoppage time John Terry scored a sublime flick to salvage a point for Chelsea. Manchester City steamrolled Crystal Palace, 4-0. Newcastle defeated West Ham, 2-1. James Ward-Prowse’s 2 goals helped Southampton to a 3-0 victory against West Brom. Aston Villa drew with Leicester, 1-1. Wayne Rooney’s 78th minute goal gave Manchester United a extremely important 1-0 win versus bitter rivals Liverpool (by the way, that goal broke Thierry Henry’s record for most goals scored in the Premier League with a single team). Stoke tied 0-0 with Arsenal. Struggling Swansea just edged Watford, 1-0. Well, that’s all for match day 22’s Premier League action.

Here is a brief recap of the Premier League matches that took place on match day 21. Enner Valencia’s brace helped West Ham to a 3-1 victory over Bournemouth. Aston Villa won for the first time since match day 1 against Crystal Palace thanks to Joleon Lescott’s 58th minute goal. Manchester United had multiple opportunities to secure the three points away to Newcastle, but in the end had to a settle for a 3-3 tie. West Brom drew 2-2 with a Chelsea side who still are having trouble. Manchester City and Everton battled out a goalless draw. Watford lost 2-0 to struggling Southampton. Stoke beat Norwich, 3-1. Jermain Defoe’s hat-trick gave Sunderland a 4-2 win against Sunderland. Liverpool and Arsenal tied 3-3. Leicester just barely edged Tottenham, 1-0. Well, that’s all for match day 21’s EPL action.

If your a Spurs fan like me you know how agonizingly painful it is going so many years without silverware (a trophy), but I believe that wait my be soon coming to a close. For one, Tottenham have one of the best teams they have had in a long time. Consisting of rising stars, Harry Kane, Dele Alli, Eric Dier, and Tom Carroll among other big names such as Toby Alderwiereld, Hugo Lloris, Jan Vertonghen, and Kyle Walker. They’re young and talented, meaning they should have a good team in the coming years as well as now. Also, with teams like Manchester United, Chelsea, and Liverpool underperforming it gives them less competition. At the moment the Lilywhites sit fourth in the Premier League and are still in the Capital One Cup. There is a possibility they could win the Capital One Cup. After all anything can happen in a playoff. Last year they made it to the final, but were beaten by Chelsea. As for the Premier League, they have a great chance of making the UEFA Champions League and possibly could win the title if they string together a few more wins. One of their criticisms is they tie to much. Only Everton have more. So, if you asked me I would say the Tottenham Hotspurs have a great chance of winning silverware this year and if they don’t, I think they definitely could in later seasons when their players start hitting their primes.